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R. 0. PRINK.

AIR BLAST APPARATUS PoR THR SEPARATION OP GOMMTNUTPD ORRS, 6m. No.248,584. Paten'd Oct. 25,1881.

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Unitarian STT-wies PATENT Ormes,...

ERASTUS O. ,FRINIQ OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR TO THE IN-DIANAPOLIS DRY PLACER AND ORE OONOENTRATING COMPANY, OF

SAME PLACE.

AIR-BLAST APPARATUS FOR THE SEPARATION F COMMINUTED GRES, de.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 248,584, dated October25, 1881.

Application tiled April QS, 1881.

To alt whom 'it may concun:

Be it known that I, FRASTUS O. FRINK, a citizen of the United States,residing at lndianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana,have invented a new and useful Air-Blast Apparatus for the Separation ofOomminuted Ores and ot' Free Metals from K Dry Sand, of which thefollowing is a specification.

to My invention relates` to a new concentrating and separatingapparatus, in which an airblast operates in conjunction with thecomminuted ore, or with free metals in dry sand, vand thepeculiarly-constructed parts ot' the apparatus for separating andconcentrating the free metals or inetalliferous portion ot the sand orore from the rock and earthy matter according to their respectivespecific weights and sizes.

In the accompanying dra-wings, Figure 1 repzo resents a longitudinalsection ofthe entire de! vice. Fig. 2 is a cross-section taken at theline c b. Fig. 2 is a view of the under side of the hopper-plate in asection ot' the air-blast chamber. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a 2 5series of ore gatherers, separators, and projectors. Fig. 4 is a topView of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a :front view of one of the ore gatherers,separators, and projectors. Fig. 6 is an enlarged perspective viewl ofthe same; and Fig. 7 is a- 3o View of the adjustable hopper and aportion of the air-blast chamber, showing theindicators for regulatingthe feed, and for adjusting the hopper for various ores.

Similar letters referto like parts throughout the various views.

A represents a forced blast-blower, preferably aloot blower, owing tothe slight but rapid vibrations or quivering ot' the blast, which causesa more rapid separation of the heavier 4o from the lighter particles ofmetal or ore than can be produced by the uuvarying monotonous blastcommon to fans.

B is the discharge-pipe ot' the blower, which connects atits dischargeend with the horizontal air-blast chamber O of the separator. Near theconnection of the blast-pipe B with the air-blast chamber O, and at thetop of the chamber O, is an opening,f,in which is fitted a slide, c d,to which is attached the hopper D, said (No model.)

hopper having at its lower end agate or cock, 5o Il, which, when open,forms a discharge from the hopper into the chamber O through the openingg, as shown in Figs. 1,2, and 21. Thus the hopper D and itsdischarge-opening g are adjustable forward or backward on the front endof the chamber C.

The upper slide, c, of the hopper is provided, preferably, on the frontside, with a graduated plate, TV, and the key w of the cock E isprovided with an indicator-point, t0', by means of 6o which and thegraduated scale 7 the size of the discharge-opening ofthe key isdetermined. Thus the scale Wis divided by radial lines, which mayindicate that the key is one-third, two-thirds, or full open, or it mayindicate that one or more tous or fractions of a ton of pulver-ized oreor sand is passing through the gate into the chamber O per day oftwenty-four hours or less, as the ease may be. The lower edge et' thescale TV, which is movable with 70 the hopper D, is provided with apoint, y, and the scaleZ below, which is on the side of chamberO, alsoindicates where the hopperDshould be moved to in order to accommodate itto various oies-'-sncli,for instance, as galeria, silver, 75 and gold.

ThechamberO ishorizontal, and hasa height, preferably greaterthan itswidth. A portion ot' its bottom is cut away or perforated with holes a,Fig. l, to correspond with the open- 8o ings a ot' the gatherers,separators, and projectors F. If the bottom of the chamber O isperforated with holes a, then the gathering, separating, and projectingdevices F may be inserted singly or united together, as shown,respectively, in Figs. 6, 3, and 4.

The device F is made in the form shown. Various other forms-such asconical, c oncaved JFronts, V-shaped, with sligh tly curved or roundedbottom, a ilat incline with raised inclined 9o sides, converging ordiverging toward the bottom, and various other analogous forms-have beenused by way of experiment, some with fair results; but the devieeF ispreferable. The front inclines backward at an angle of about forty-tivedegrees, and is concaved, as shown at p p. The rear side, p', also isinclined from the base forward, with an angle, and the base ishorizontal, thus forming a triangle with a flat bottom, inclined rear,and a concave front, while the ends are parallel and perpendicular tofit the sides of the chamber C, as shown.

A series ofthe ore gatherers, separators, and projectors are arranged atthe bottom of the chamber C, andthe first four openings n (in the caseillustrated) open into a chamber, K, below, while the last threeopenings n enter a separate chamber, K', as shown in Fig. 4. This exactnumber ofopenings n entering their respective chambers K K may bevaried, and separate chambers may be employed for cach opening, ifdesired, so that each chamber will form a pocket to receive such metalsand minerals as may be deposited therein; bntfor galeria, free gold,free silver, and heavy sulphurets I prefer to have several openings ndischarging into one pocket, as shown.

The pockets or receptacles K, K', and K2and others, it' used, should beclosed at the bottom by valves--such, for instance, as those shown at LL L2, or others of different constructionbecause in separating nofree-airopeningshould be between the interior of the separator and theoutside, except at the discharge end of the machine, owing to the factthat ifa free uninterrupted opening does occur the metals and sand orquartz will immediately seek it and be discharged in a mixed condition;but when the chambers K K K2 are kept closed, or the gate is openedsuiiicient to allow the concentrates caught to ilow out gradually, thenthe separation goes on in a satisfactory manner. Again, if the chambersK-connect with other-chambers, as at M, having no freeair outlet, thenthe gates L may bc freely opened and permit the concentrates to tlowinto the lower chamber as fast as they are formed; but when theconcentrates are taken from the lower receiver or box, M, care should beexercised to prevent the whole of the concentrates from running out,unless the gate L above is temporarily closed, otherwise some sand orquartz will be deposited therein. These chambers K K' K2 are eachprovided with a vertical opening at the side in which is fitted a glassor other transparent substance, to indicate when the concentrates are attheir proper height to prevent an air1eak at the gate. The chambers K KK2 may be worked with the gates L closed until they become partiallyfull of deposits, and then the gates may be opened until the greaterportion has run out, and in case the feed has been shut ott' then allthe deposits in the chamber may be withdrawn.

Immediately over and near the center of the chamber K2 is a deilector,P, which is secured t0 the top and sides of the chamber C, eitherstationary or adjustable, as desired. This deilector P forms an abutmentfor the airblast to Strike against, and turns the blast downward intothe chamber K2, also carrying downward all particles of sand, quartz,earthy matter, and mineral which have not been caught before. Theheavier particles of quartz, earthy matter, and sometimes a trace ofmineral or metal, will be caught in this chamber as tailings, whilethefme loury dust and mineralpass over the deflcctor R to the dischargeend R of the air-separator proper. The fine particles, which aredischarged at R', may pass into the dust box or chamberH dry, which withmany minerals, especially sulphurets, is desirable; but when free goldand silver ores or sulphates are treatc, the wet process should be used,which consists of a sprinkler, S S', arranged to carry the dust downwardinto the water Y which has accumulated over the Quicksilver G in thereceptacle G of the dust-box. Here the water becomes agitated by theforce of the blast, and the tine particles of metal are forced incontact with the quicksilver and are caught thereby. The water graduallyoverflows and runs off at the end ot' the box, but any particles of goldand silver which are not caught by the quicksilver in the receptacle Gare caught on the amalgam-plates H at the bottom of the box H, while theslime and tine sand wash off and are discharged into the sluice I.

When it becomes necessary to remove the quicksilver in the receptacleG', it is done by removing the plug` G2 and catching the qucksilver in areceptacle placed below. The quicksilver may then be squeezed and theamalgam retorted in the usual manner.

It is obvious that all apparatuses employed for the separation of thericher portions ot' pulverized ore from the gangue and other matterwhich it is not desired to Work, are essentially based upon the fact ot'the di'erent specic gravities ot' the substances to be separated. Thiswould at first blush seem to be a simple aii'air, and so it would be ifall the particles under treatment were of precisely the same size andshape; but this is not the case. The great variety of size and shapeprior to myinvention has complicated the problem and rendered theseparation of the valuable portion of the ore from that which has novalue very difficult, because the particles of ore which are ofdifferent specific gravities, but of' actual weight, will, if ot' thesame shape and under certain conditions, go together. Thus a smallparticle of metal having the sameactnal weight and shape as a largerparticle of rock, but differing in specific weight, will in still waterfall through the same distance in a giveutime; but in a horizont'alblast ofair, the larger body, presenting more surface to the action ofthe blast, is moved farther along while falling through the same height.Again, particles of ore which areof ditferentspecifc gravities, butotactual weight and of different shapes, will in an air-blast go to avariety of distances in a curved line before coming to rest at a givenfall. Thus ake metal, or that which is flat and thin, will be movedfarther in a horizontal blast thauthe same weight ot' the same metalhaving a spherical or cubcal form. Again, the tine particles ot'impalpable metallic dust, always produced in greater or less quantitieswhen ore is pulverized, will naturally float along in the slightestair-current, owing to its IIO IIS

flaky condition. This dust is, in many instances, ot` great value,'andis frequently lost in large quantities by the old methods ot'concentrating.

Before entering into a description ot' the operation of my newconcentiator, it is deemed advisable to set forth approximately thedit'- ferentI specitic gravities of some ofthe elements to beencountered and separated in the concentration ot' argentiterous andaurit'erons ores. rlhus, vitreous quartz has a specific gravity ot 2.65,and limestone has a specific gravity from 2.721 to possible The aboveare the two heaviest earthy elements to be contended against. Galena hasa specitic gravity of 7.4L to 7.6, average 7.5. Free silver has aspecitic gravity of 10.3 to 10.5, average 10.4, and native gold has aspecitic gravity ot' 19.20 to 19.36, average 19.30. The dili'erence inspecitic gravity between galena and quartz is 4.85; between silver andquartz, 7.75, and between gold and quartz, 16.65.

The following is a description of the operation and results produced bymy new separator.

and concentrator, based upon actual experiments with a machine having acapacity of treating two tons of galena ore per day of twenty-fourhours, to wit: Galena ore, containing twenty-h've percent. galena andseventy-tiveper cent. of quartz, crushed and screened through a sieveot' ifty meshes to the lineal inch, was placed in the hopper B, thehopper being adjusted with the point y of the indicator on the galena-mark ot' the'seale Z. The blower A was then set in motion and revolvedslowly. rlhe gate E was then opened bymoving the handle a* down untilthe pointer w/indicated the opening to the passage g to be two-thirdsopen, by the scale 1V. rllhe comminuted ore was thus admitted into thechamber C, not in a broad stream extending across the chamber, butthrough the opening g, which in length is about one-third, a little moreor less, of the width ot' the chamber G. Here. the stream ot' pulverizedore encounters the blast from the blower, and the sand and lighterparticles ot' metal are blown forward, while the heaviest cubes ot'galena, as they drop, pass through the Iirst opening a in the bottom otthe chamber G,in the direction ot'the arrow fz', into the chamber orpocket K below. If any large particles ot' quartz fall in front ot' thefirst ore gatherer, separator, and projector F, it is drawn toward thecenter by the curve-trough face pp, and is blown upward by the blast, inthe direction ot' the arrow o', into the main chamber C. The next sizeparticles of galena pass through the second hole a', the next sizethrough the third hole nl, and the next through the last hole a', intothe chamber K below, the quartz being reproj ected upward centrally intothe chamber C, together with such particles ot' ake or iloury galena ashave not snflieient shape and specitic weight to cause them to fallthrough the first four holes into the chamber K. The galena deposited inthe chamber K through the rst four holes a a', at the base of thegatherers, separators, and projectors F, was pure galeria,withnotracesofquartz;butthesizesandshapes ot' the particles of galena socollected were various. rllhe last three holes a. which discharge intothe chamber or pocket K', permit a mixture ot' large particles ot'quartz and smaller particles of galena to pass. This compound is a veryrich concentrate, at least two-thirds ot' the mass being galena. rlhelast pocket, K2, catches a majority ofthe pulverized quartz and shows atrace ot the tine dust of galena, all ot' which dust is readilyseparated from the tailings by screens or bolts, having meshes tineenough to prevent the quartz from passing through, which wasdemonstrated to be a fact, by placing the tailings into asilkhandkerchief and dusting ont the tine iioury galena,

leaving the quartz in the handkerchief without a trace ot' galena. Therewill be a small quantity ot' the tine galeria-dust which will pass overthe delieetor R, and thisis collected inthe dust-chamber H. NVithgalena, however, it' water is employed through the pipe and sprinkler SS', the quicksilver in the tank G may be dispensed with and the tankiilled with water, when the galenadust and fine quartz are blown intothe water in the tank G. The metalliferous portion settles immediatelyto the bottom, while the sand and dirt pass ott with the overliow. Thewater principle, however, may be dispensed with in treating galena andother sulphurets, it desired, and the tine dust maybe collected in thechamber H dry and afterward quickly and easily separated by suitablescreens or bolts.

In the treatment otl free gold-ores the hop- `per B is adjusted so as todischarge almost directly over the iirst opening, n, into the pocket K.The action ot' the air-blast is precisely the same as for galena, andthe results produced are the same-that is, the coarser particles ot`gold pass through the rst hole a, the next heaviest through the nexthole, until the sepaatiou is complete-nothing in the shape ot' goldexcept the finest flour or flake gold passing over the stop R, and suchparticles ot'ne gold as do pass the stop R are caught in the quieksilverG in the tank G below, while the quartz or other earthy matter passesott with the overflow into the sluice I.

The floor ofthe dust-box H, between the tank G and end of said box, isslightly inclined and provided with amalgam-plates H', for catching anytine gold which maybe forced along with the water Y.

It will be observed that the blast and ore to be treated at rst passthrough the space between the tops of the parts F and the top and sidesof the chamber G, and after passing through this small space the sizeot' the air-passage is increased, so as to reduce the force of the blastafter the metallit'erous portion ot' the ore has been graded in size andseparated from the rock. This increase in size of the discharge end ofthe machine maybe IOO IIO

ot any size desired. The larger it is the less action the wind has onanything which may pass through it.

Tha-t I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. rlhe longitudinally adjustable hopper D, combined with theslide-plates c and d, having discharge-opening g through them, and thechamber (l, having in its top an oblong opening or hole. s, for thelower end ot' the hopper to be adjusted either forward or backward,substantially as and for the purpose specied.

2. The ore gathering, separating, .1nd projecting device F, with concaveinclined front, substantially as shown and described.

3. The orc gathering, separating, and projecting' device F, with concaveinclined front p p and angular back p', substantialyas shown anddescribed.

4. A series of' ore gathering, separating, and projecting devices, F,having concave inclined fronts and angular backs 1)', anddischargeopenings a a at their bases, combined with the chamber C aboveand chambers K below, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. A series of ore gatherers, scparators,and projectors, F, havinginclined concaved fronts with holes a n at their bases, combined withthe chambers K below, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

6. The chamber C, having a series of orc gatherers, separators, andprojectors, F, with eoncaved inclined fronts, and provided at its rearend with a stationary vertical detlector, R, substantially as and forthe purpose specitied.

7. In an air-blast apparatus for separating orcs, the dust-box H,provided with a tank, G', under the discharge end R ofthe separator forholding Quicksilver or water, combined with the discharge end R of theseparator, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

ERAST US 0. FRINK.

Witnesses:

GEORG-E H. BENNETT, L. L. FORD.

